Orlando Magic
On February 15, 2006, Arroyo was dealt (along with Darko Miličić) from Detroit to the Orlando Magic, in exchange for Kelvin Cato and a future first-round draft choice.
The addition of Arroyo and Miličić, plus the return of point guard Jameer Nelson from the injured list, sparked a resurgence of the Magic in the last quarter of the 2005–2006 season, as they finished with a 12–3 run, nearly reaching the playoffs. During this run, the team had an eight-game winning streak, beating top teams such as the Dallas Mavericks, San Antonio Spurs, Miami Heat and the Detroit Pistons. During the stretch run, Arroyo averaged 22.1 MPG, 10.8 PPG, 2.8 APG, and 2.2 RPG off the bench, which earned Arroyo the back-up point guard position behind Nelson. These averages were significant improvements from the statistics he accumulated with the Pistons, when he averaged only 12 minutes per game. He scored a season-high 21 points against the Phoenix Suns on March 3, 2006. On April 9, 2006, Arroyo injured his left hamstring and was sidelined for four games, returning on April 17 and scoring 17 points in the last game of the season.
Arroyo started the 2006–07 season as the team's backup point guard but was demoted by the team's coach Brian Hill following an offensive slump, eventually returning to this position during mid season.
The Orlando Magic started the 2007–08 season with new coach Stan Van Gundy, and Arroyo again was at the backup point guard position. On November 28, 2007, he had a career-high 14 assists in a game against the Seattle SuperSonics. On December 29, 2007, Arroyo was promoted to the starting position after Nelson experienced an extended offensive slump. With Nelson in the starting position during this period the team was having an average of seventeen turnovers per game, and he was unable to score in double digits on 10 out of 17 games. This led to Van Gundy issuing several public notices concerning the team's performance eventually leading to changes in the starting formation. During Arroyo's first three games in the starting position the number of turnovers produced by the team was lowered to eleven per game. Arroyo's points average was within double digits in all of these games and he recorded seventeen assists. Arroyo closed January in the starting position, the team finished the month winning five out of six games.
However, after playing 5 minutes on February 6, 2008, and being replaced by Nelson, Arroyo saw his playing time limited again. Arroyo did not play from February 11, when he played for less than 10 minutes and scored 7 points, until March 1. In an interview with Puerto Rican newspaper El Nuevo Día, coach Van Gundy said that he prefers Keyon Dooling on the slot of back-up point guard right now. Due to injuries to both Nelson and Dooling, Arroyo was put back in the starting lineup that day and ended up scoring 13 points with 8 assists in 41 minutes. Following the conclusion of the 2007–2008 NBA season Arroyo became a free agent. When interviewed, Arroyo noted that he was interested in returning to Orlando, but that he was open to hear offers from the New York Knicks and Miami Heat.
Read more about this topic: Carlos Arroyo, Career
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